Ratcliffe isn’t the only super rich benefit claimant. In the 2023/24 year, some of the government’s subsidies to corporations amounted to a whopping £32bn. The year before, they were £53bn because gas inflation not only increased bills but also the government increased corporate handouts to profiteering fossil fuel companies. And now Starmer has announced a further £22bn bung to the fossil fuel sector for carbon capture projects that don’t work.
With the potential of an automated system to replace capitalism, the government should fund robotics development to replace industries including Ratcliffe’s, while ensuring everyone has an equitable stake in the resulting society.
High energy costs do not provide an argument for an £120m handout to a billionaire. We could bring down energy bills through investment in renewables. Tribe Impact Capital has calculated that just 1.2% of the Sahara Desert would need to be covered in solar panels to power the entire globe’s energy requirements.